Victoria Beckham has become better recognised as an international style icon, rather than a music artist. Beckham made a guest appearance on the catwalk for Maria Grachvogel in 2000, marking her debut as a model at London Fashion Week. Beckham also acted as a British ambassador for Dolce and Gabbana and was briefly the face of Rocawear in 2003. Beckham designed a limited-edition fashion line for Rock & Republic called VB Rocks in 2004, consisting mainly of jeans for the high end of the market, retailing at approximately $300 in the US. She had previously "hit it off instantly" with Rock & Republic designer, Michael Ball, in Los Angeles. He commented "She not only understands fashion and trends but has been a trend-setter and fashion icon for years."
On 16 January 2006, Beckham walked the runway for Roberto Cavalli at Milan Fashion Week, and was for a period exclusively dressed by him for red-carpet and social events. For the March 2006 issue of Harper's Bazaar, Beckham acted as fashion editor when she styled her close friend, Katie Holmes, for a fashion shoot. In July 2006, Beckham released a line of sunglasses, called dvb Eyewear. She has admitted to a personal love of sunglasses, saying "I'm quite obsessed with sunglasses. I collect vintage Guccis and Carreras — they can make virtually any outfit look cool." After Beckham's departure from Rock & Republic, in September 2006, she furthered her fashion ventures by launching her own denim label, of which she acts as creative director. The new line of Beckham's jeans collection is called dvb Style. In the same month, Intimately Beckham, a his-and-her fragrance line, was launched at a lavish press conference in Venice. Beckham then launched her new official website, dvbstyle.com, which promotes her fashion work. She also produced a range of handbags and jewellery in association with the Japanese store, Samantha Thavasa.
Beckham in 1999
On 5 June 2007, Beckham won two British Glamour Magazine Awards, one for "Woman of the Year" and another for "Entrepreneur of the Year," which celebrated her fashion achievements. On 14 June 2007 Beckham launched her dvb Denim collection in New York at the high-end Saks Fifth Avenue, along with unveiling her eye-wear range in the United States for the first time. In the same month, Beckham made her first appearance at London's annual Graduate Fashion Week as a judge alongside Glenda Bailey (editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar) and Lanvin's Alber Elbaz, to choose the winner of the River Island Gold Award, worth £20,000.[84] In August 2007, Intimately Beckham perfume hit US stores for the first time. Victoria Beckham has stated "We are not just saying, 'We are celebrities, put our name on it.' I love to be involved with the whole process." The Intimately Beckham line has been predicted to sell over $100 million worth of sales internationally, doubling this estimate in 2008. In September 2007, Beckham released Intimately Beckham Night a new range of his-and-her fragrances, and her debut cosmetics line V-Sculpt was unveiled and launched in Tokyo.[89] In a 2007 appearance at an LA Galaxy press conference, Beckham is credited with having popularised Roland Mouret's 'moon dress' and his brand, and Beckham was also the face of Marc Jacobs for his Spring 2008 collection. Beckham's own fashion collection debuted during the 2008 New York Fashion Week at the Waldorf Hotel,[92] featuring dresses, of which only 400 will be made. Her first collection, that will retail between £650 and £1900, was met with positive reviews; "it was a very impressive, accomplished collection, with not a single dud. ... it was the fabrics (silk, wool and organza) and the attention to detail that impressed", wrote one critic, whilst others called it "Beautiful", "desirable" and "classy".
Beckham sealed her status as a fashion icon by appearing on the cover of different editions of Vogue Magazine three times in a the space of a year. Beckham's first appearance was on the April 2008 cover of British Vogue, then in November she appeared on Indian Vogue, and in February 2009 she made the cover of Russian Vogue. Beckham has voiced her anti-fur beliefs, and promotes an animal friendly wardrobe filled with faux/synthetic furs. Her stand against the fur industry has generated admiration from animal rights organizations, including PETA. Of PETA's numerous anti-fur campaigns, Beckham stated that she is "supportive of its high-profile anti-fur campaigns," and pledged "never to work with fur in any of her own fashion collections". Beckham is also well known for her love of designer high heeled shoes. In November 2011, Beckham was awarded the "Designer of the Year" gong at the annual British Fashion Awards.
